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Live asteroid impact12/25/2023 ![]() ![]() Then, the debris formed a cometlike tail that streamed behind Dimorphos. ![]() The debris sprayed away from the asteroid in the shape of a cone, which became twisted by the asteroid’s orbit as it circled Didymos. The initial impact, which obliterated the DART spacecraft, sprayed over 1,000 tons of dust and rock off the asteroid and sent it hurtling into space. The Hubble clip reveals how the collision turned Dimorphos into an “active asteroid,” a space rock that orbits like an asteroid but has a tail of material like a comet, according to NASA. ‘Active asteroid’: Dimorphos after impact The Hubble Space Telescope watched debris blast into space and eventually twist into a tail behind the asteroid. The DART impact was successful, changing Dimorphos’ orbital period around Didymos by 33 minutes, according to one of five new studies published Wednesday in the journal Nature that describe the aftermath of the event. Neither Dimorphos, nor the larger asteroid it orbits named Didymos, pose a threat to Earth. It was the first time humanity has attempted to change the movement of a celestial object, and the results show how this kinetic impact technology could be used to deflect asteroids that may ever appear to be on a collision course with Earth. The DART spacecraft, weighing about 1,200 pounds (544 kilograms), slammed head on into the asteroid Dimorphos at 13,000 miles per hour (20,921 kilometers per hour), in an attempt to change the space rock’s velocity. Rotating pinwheel-shaped features become visible once the asteroid’s orbit distorts the original cone shape of the debris. In the clip, released by NASA on Wednesday, debris can be seen flying away from the asteroid. Hubble’s “movie” stitches together images taken during a period that started more than an hour before the collision and ended October 8. When a NASA spacecraft intentionally crashed into an asteroid on September 26, the collision caused the space rock to release a cometlike tail.Īn array of telescopes, including the Hubble Space Telescope, were perfectly positioned to capture the DART, or Double Asteroid Redirection Test, mission and its aftermath, which continues to surprise astronomers five months later. ![]()
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